Abuja: Dr Victor Muruako, the Executive Chairman of the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC), announced the commission's collaboration with the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to tackle fiscal governance challenges and promote transparency. This announcement was made at the 2025 National Conference on Public Accounts and Fiscal Governance, organized by the House of Representatives PAC Committee in Abuja.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the conference, themed 'Fiscal Governance in Nigeria: Charting a New Course for Transparency and Sustainable Development,' serves as a crucial platform for enhancing accountability and prudent financial management in Nigeria's public sector. Muruako highlighted the shared vision of the FRC and PAC to entrench fiscal discipline, ensuring that public resources deliver maximum value for sustainable development.
He emphasized the importance of robust oversight and collaboration, particularly with the National Assembly Committees, in achieving these goals. Muruako noted that the FRC has played a significant role in increasing the remittance of Operating Surplus by Government-Owned Enterprises, which has boosted the Federal Government's Independent Revenue from N200 billion in 2013 to over N2 trillion in 2024.
Despite these achievements, Muruako acknowledged the challenges faced by the commission, including weak enforcement mechanisms, limited public awareness, and slow domestication of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA), with only 26 states adopting similar laws. Additionally, inefficiencies in interagency coordination continue to hinder progress.
Muruako proposed the establishment of a National Fiscal Governance Framework to consolidate fiscal oversight efforts and advocated for amendments to the FRA to include stronger penalties for non-compliance, thereby enhancing accountability. He stressed the need for adherence to the constitutional framework governing public debt and borrowing, which is under the exclusive legislative list, and the importance of monitoring the use of borrowed funds by subnational governments.
The conference, according to Muruako, provides an opportunity to reinforce the constitutional position of federal laws and align national and sub-national laws. It also aims to strengthen audit frameworks and galvanize stakeholder commitment under the reforms of President Bola Tinubu's administration. The FRC remains committed to supporting the PAC in advancing transparency, reducing financial leakages, and institutionalizing sound public financial management.
Muruako commended the PAC and its chairman for securing Nigeria's hosting rights for the 2025 West African Association of Public Accounts Committees (WAPAC) Annual Conference, reinforcing Nigeria's leadership in regional fiscal governance. He concluded by expressing optimism for building a Nigeria where fiscal responsibility underpins sustainable development.